Don’t talk to “Strangers on a Train”

Strangers on a Train (1951) is a psychological thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger, Ruth Roman, and Robert Walker. The film was based on the novel of the same name by Patricia Highsmith (The Talented Mr. Ripley), with cinematography by long-time Hitchcock collaborator Robert Burks and music by Dimitri Tiomkin.

The fateful moment that starts the action

The plot concerns two strangers who meet on a train: a young tennis player Guy Haines (Granger) and a somewhat charming psychopath named Bruno Antony (Walker). Bruno suggests that they should exchange murders, but Guy really doesn’t take Bruno seriously. When Bruno commits the first murder and tries to convince Guy to complete their “bargain,” the plot takes a series of strange and exciting twists and turns.

Strangers on a Train ushered in a golden period for director Hitchcock. He would go on to make some of the most memorable and successful films of the 1950s including, Dial M for Murder (1954), Rear Window (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), and North by Northwest (1959).

Alfred Hitchcock (1899 – 1980) was an English film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is one of the most influential filmmakers of the 20th century. Hitchcock directed over 50 feature films, many are classics that have been honored and studied for years. Some of Hitchcock’s classic films include The 39 Steps (1935), Sabotage (1936), Rebecca (1940), Suspicion (1941), Shadow of a Doubt (1943), Rear Window (1954), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), and Psycho (1960).

Robert Burks (1909 – 1968) was an American cinematographer. He was adept at both color and black and white photography. In 1928, Burks got his start in film at Warner Bros. He eventually worked his way up to Director of Photography in 1944. The first feature that he worked on as a cinematographer was The Fountainhead (1949) starring Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal. Burks is closely associated with Hitchock. He was the cinematographer on some of the directors most famous works from the 1950s and 1960s including Strangers on a Train (1951), I Confess (1952), Dial M for Murder (1954), Rear Window (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), The Wrong Man (1956), Vertigo (1958) and North by Northwest (1959).

Dimitri Tiomkin (1894 – 1979) was a Russian-born American film composer. He received 22 Academy Award nominations and won four Oscars. Tiomkin got his big break working with director Frank Capra on the classic Lost Horizon (1937). He also collaborated with Capra on You Can’t Take it With You (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Meet John Doe (1941) and It’s a Wonderful Life (1946). Tiomkin was famous for scoring western films including Duel in the Sun (1946), High Noon (1952), Giant (1956), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), and Rio Bravo (1959). Tiomkin also wrote the scores for three other Hitchcock films: Shadow of  Doubt (1943), I Confess (1953), and Dial M for Murder (1954).

Farley Granger and Ruth Roman

Farley Granger (1925 – 2011) was an American actor best known for his two films with Alfred Hitchcock: Rope (1948) and Strangers on a Train (19510). Signed to a long-term contract by Samuel Goldwyn. He made two films: The North Star (1943) and The Purple Heart (1944) before joining the United States Navy. When he returned to Hollywood he starred in They Live by Night (1948) which brought him to the attention of Hitchcock. Granger went on to star in other Goldwyn films including Enchantment (1948), Roseanna McCoy (1949), Edge of Doom (1950), and Our Very Own (1950). Granger worked in films, stage, and television, including work in several soap operas into the early 2000s.

Ruth Roman (1922 – 1989) was an American film, stage, and television actress. Roman got her start in the movies starring in the Jungle Queen (1945) film serial. She had a notable role in The Window (1949) which lead to her being cast in Champion (1949) co-starring Kirk Douglas. These successes earned her a contract with Warner Bros. During her years under contract, she costarred with some of Hollywood’s top leading men including Gary Cooper, Errol Flynn, Glenn Ford, and James Stewart. Roman also worked steadily on television during the 1950s and beyond, appearing on such popular shows as Mannix, Marcus Welby, M.D., The Mod Squad, The FBI, and The Outer Limits.

Robert Walker and Donna Reed in See Here, Private Hargrove

Robert Walker (1918 – 1951) was an American actor who was to the first husband of film actress Jennifer Jones. In 1943, he was signed to a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where he had supporting roles in Bataan (1943) and Madame Curie (1943). The studio started grooming him for stardom with the starring role in See Here, Private Hargrove (1944). Other starring roles followed in films like Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944), The Clock (1945) co-starring Judy Garland, Her Highness and the Bellboy (1945) with Hedy Lamarr and June Allyson, and Till the Clouds Roll By (1946) where he portrayed composer Jerome Kern. Walker’s last film, My Son John (1952) used footage from Strangers on a Train when Walker died before production ended.

Strangers on a Train also features Leo G. Carroll, Patricia Hitchcock (the director’s daughter), and Laura Elliot (later known as Kasey Rogers).

Strangers on a Train trivia:

• Hitchcock bought the rights to the novel for a mere $7,500.
• Robert Walker was Hitchcock’s only choice to play Bruno Antony.
• Hitchcock had wanted William Holden to play Guy Haines, but he was unavailable.
• Patricia Hitchcock is the last surviving member of the cast.
• Farley Granger said that Hitchcock didn’t like Ruth Roman and treated her badly in front of everyone.
• Tennis pro Jack Cunningham coached Farley Granger for the tennis scenes and played his opponent in the movie.

To watch the film, click on the link below.

To join the discussion on Zoom on October 20, 2020, at 6 p.m. Central Time, click the link to the Chicago Film Club Meetup Group.

Questions for discussion:

1. What did you think of the opening scenes of the movie?
2. What clues do we have that Bruno may be “trouble?”
3. How do the tennis match and Bruno’s struggle to retrieve Guy’s lighter add to the film’s suspense?
4. The film develops the idea of the double: Bruno Guy, Miriam, Ann. Can you find any other pairs?

Grace Kelly tries to expose Cary Grant in Alfred Hitchcock’s “To Catch a Thief”

To Catch a Thief (1955) is a romantic thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. John Michael Hayes wrote the screenplay and the cinematography was by long-time Hitchcock associate, Robert Burks.

Cary Grant and Grace Kelly

On the French Riviera, there is a rash of jewel robberies that have all the earmarks of former jewel thief John “The Cat” Robie (Grant). Robie has remained straight since his parole following his work in the French Resistance during World War II. Parole was contingent on Robie staying clean, but these new robberies have put his freedom in jeopardy.

Enter Jessie and Frances (Francie) Stevens, a nouveau riche widow (Jesse Royce Landis) traveling with her daughter (Kelly). Robie believes that he can clear himself if he can find the real thief, pretending to be a businessman. Francie sees through Robie’s cover. When her mother’s jewels are stolen, Francie is determined to expose Robie as “The Cat.”

Alfred Hitchcock (1899 – 1980) was an English film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is one of the most influential filmmakers of the 20th century. Hitchcock directed over 50 feature films, many are classics that have been honored and studied for years. Some of Hitchcock’s classic films include The 39 Steps (1935), Sabotage )1936), Rebecca (1940), Suspicion (1941), Shadow of a Doubt (1943), Rear Window (1954), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), and Psycho (1960).

John Michael Hayes (1919 – 2008) was an American screenwriter who wrote four screenplays for Hitchcock: Rear Window (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), The Trouble with Harry (1955), and The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956). Hayes was born in Worcester, Massachusetts. As a boy, he missed a lot of school because of ear infections. During his time at home, he acquired a love of reading and writing. As a young adult, he got jobs writing for local periodicals. He eventually got a job with the Associated Press and attended Massachusetts State College. After serving in the US Army during World War II, Hayes moved to California and began writing scripts for the radio. Hayes parlayed his radio scripting into a job writing screenplays in Hollywood. He worked on the scripts for big-budget films like Peyton Place (1957), BUtterfield 8 (1960), The Carpetbaggers (1964), and Nevada Smith (1966).

Robert Burks (1909 – 1968) was an American cinematographer. He was adept at both color and black and white photography. In 1928, Burks got his start in film at Warner Bros. He eventually worked his way up to Director of Photography in 1944. The first feature that he worked as a cinematographer was The Fountainhead (1949) starring Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal. Burks is closely associated with Hitchock. He was the cinematographer on some of the directors most famous works from the 1950s and 1960s including Strangers on a Train (1951), I Confess (1952), Dial M for Murder (1954), Rear Window (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), The Wrong Man (1956), Vertigo (1958) and North by Northwest (1959).

Cary Grant (1904 – 1986) was an English-born American actor who became one of the most popular leading men in film history. Grant started his career in vaudeville before heading to Hollywood. He became a superstar in the late 1930s in a series of screwball comedies including The Awful Truth (1937) with Irene Dunne. He was a memorable C. K. Dexter Haven in The Philadelphia Story (1940) opposite Katharine Hepburn and James Stewart. He received two Best Actor nominations: Penny Serenade (1941) and None but the Lonely Hearts (1944). Other classic Grant films include Gunga Din (1939), Only Angels Have Wings (1939), and Arsenic and Old Lace (1944). He made for popular films with Alfred Hitchcock: Suspicion (1941), Notorious (1946), To Catch a Thief (1955), and North by Northwest (1959). He was presented with an Honorary Oscar at the 42nd Academy Awards in 1970.

Grace Kelly (1929 – 1982) was an American film actress who after a fairly brief Hollywood career became the Princess of Monaco by marrying Prince Rainier III in 1956. Kelly appeared in theater productions in New York City and on live television during the early 1950s. For her role in Mogambo (1953), Kelly was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. She lost the Oscar but became a major star with lead roles in five films released in 1954: Dial M for Murder, Rear Window, The Country Girl, Green Fire, and The Bridges of Toko-Ri. She would make only three more movies—To Catch a Thief, The Swan (1955), and High Society (1956)—before retiring from films.

To Catch a Thief Trivia:

• Cary Grant announced his retirement in 1953 but was lured by Hitchcock to take the role of John Robie which resulted in Grant working in Hollywood for another 11 years.
• Grace Kelly was killed in an automobile accident on the same road as her famous chase scene. She was 52 years old.
• Jesse Royce Landis played Kelly’s mother in two films: To Catch a Thief and The Swan. She also is famous for playing Grant’s mother in North by Northwest, even though she was just barely eight years older than he.
• Actress Brigitte Auber is considered “the teenage” when compared to Kelly’s character in the film when in fact Auber was 4 ½ years older than Kelly.
• The film’s landmark cinematography won an Academy Award for Robert Burks.

To watch the film, click on the YouTube link below. Be sure to use this link because it is the best print on the channel.

After you’ve watched the movie, join us for a discussion on Zoom, September 21, 2020, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time.

Stephen Reginald is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Discussion of "To Catch a Thief"

Time: Sep 22, 2020, 06:30 PM Central Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/74456059761?pwd=Vlh3SzJlaGxpRzZla3oxcTRWVGEzZz09

Meeting ID: 744 5605 9761

Passcode: qVR5zh

Discussion Questions:

1. What did you make of the relationship between Grant and Kelly’s characters? Was it a believable relationship?
2. The movie is visually stunning. Would the film be as entertaining if it was set in another location?
3. The dialogue is filled with double-entendres. Do you have any favorites?
4. How is this like other Hitchcock films? How is it different?

“The Birds” on the big screen September 19

Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 classic, The Birds will hit the big screen for a one-night showing September 19, 2012, in theaters all across the country. Like the special screenings of Casablanca and Singing in the Rain, this one is sponsored by Turner Classic Movies. The screening will include an interview with star Tippi Hedren and special introduction featuring TCM host Robert Osborne. To find a screening near you, click here.

Tippi Hedren finds safety in a phone booth in one of the film’s
most famous scenes.

If there is a classic film that benefits from a big-screen showing, it’s The Birds. Based on a short story by Daphne Du Maurier with a screenplay by Evan Hunter, the movie is filled with iconic scenes and amazing—for the time—special effects.

The top-billed star is Rod Taylor who plays Mitch Brenner, a San Francisco lawyer who falls for socialite Melanie Daniels played by Hedren. Hedren, a model and single mother, was plucked from obscurity by Hitchcock to be his new leading lady. Groomed to be the next cool blond—Madeleine Carroll, Ingrid Bergman, Grace Kelly, and Eva Marie Saint preceded her—Hedren became an overnight sensation. She won the Golden Globe award for most promising newcomer, female, the year after the movie’s release. Also in the cast are Academy Award winner Jessica Tandy, then child star Veronica Cartwright, and Suzanne Pleshette. In smaller roles are character actor Richard Deacon (The Dick Van Dyke Show) and as one of the children at Cathy Brenner’s (Cartwright) birthday party is an unbilled Morgan Brittany who later went on to star in TV’s Dallas.

The Birds may not be one of Hitchcock’s greatest films, but it certainly is one of his most entertaining. A huge hit upon its initial release, the film offers up exquisite camera work by frequent Hitchcock cinematographer Robert Burks. The special effects were created Ub Iwerks, the genius behind the special effects at the Disney studio. One of the unusual aspects of the film is that is has no musical score. Instead, the sound of birds is heard throughout. Bernard Herrmann (Psycho), composer of many Hitchcock film scores acted as the films uncredited sound director.